Enough Project Critiques South Sudan “Non-Agreement”

Enough Project Critiques South Sudan “Non-Agreement” in Addis

February 1, 2015 (Addis Ababa) --- South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and rebel leader former Vice President Riek Machar, meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, have signed an agreement committing to end the civil war that has engulfed South Sudan since December 2013. Experts at the Enough Project spoke out on this occasion, and are available for further commentary and analysis this week.

Justine Fleischner, Enough Project policy analyst on Sudan and South Sudan, currently in Addis monitoring the negotiations, said: "The red-eyed negotiations just concluded in Addis Ababa could have been a turning point in South Sudan's conflict. Instead, IGAD has reached another non-agreement. The bottom line is that in the absence of the promised regime of regional travel bans and asset freezes, the warring parties see no reason to adjust their behavior. IGAD's unwillingness to impose sanctions is in part due to competing regional economic interests and business ties. Meanwhile, the cost of war is being paid by the people of South Sudan."

Fleischner added: "The anticlimax of the 29th IGAD Heads of State Summit has revealed in full color the disinterest of the warring parties in peace. As tanks burn in Upper Nile with the charred remains of their operators still inside, IGAD remains unwilling to break the deadlock by creating consequences for the parties and their uncompromising desire to hold power no matter the cost."

Akshaya Kumar, Enough Project policy analyst on Sudan and South Sudan, said: "With this latest deal, there is now a real danger that the African Union's first ever Commission of Inquiry report will never see the light of day. The AU and IGAD seem willing to sacrifice accountability to get an agreement, but there can be no lasting peace and security without justice."

Kumar added: "As South Sudan's elites play a game of political musical chairs in Addis Ababa, it's becoming obvious that their machinations at the negotiating table have little to do with addressing the grim reality of the civil war back home in South Sudan. This latest deal puts off an end of fighting until March 5. South Sudan's war ravaged population can't afford to wait."

South Sudan's civil war, which broke out in December 2013, has exacted a terrible toll on its civilian population, has its origins in a power struggle between factions aligned with President Salva Kiir and those who joined former Vice President Riek Machar.

For more analysis, read the Enough Project’s report, “Spoils of War, Spoilers of Peace: Changing the Calculus of South Sudan’s Deadly Conflict”: www.enoughproject.org/reports/spoils-war-spoilers-peace

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